


Eiji's Despair

by LizzardLady



Category: Sword Art Online
Genre: Canon Universe, Canon events dont really happen, Drabble, Gen, I rlly like Eiji so I wrote a one shot about him, One Shot, Short One Shot, guess I'll have to write more to make up for it, he's probably not even gonna be in the third season, oh well
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-23
Updated: 2018-02-23
Packaged: 2019-03-22 20:12:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 858
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13771668
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LizzardLady/pseuds/LizzardLady
Summary: A short one-shot telling about how Eiji felt just after Yuuna died in Sword Art Online.





	Eiji's Despair

**Author's Note:**

> Heyo! After watching Ordinal Scale (twice) I decided to write a drabble about Eiji. I don't really know why, but Eiji is probably one of my favorite characters, if not my favorite. It's too bad he's a movie exclusive character, so he probably won't even be in the third season. . . Oh well. All the more reason to write about him, haha. Anyway, I hope you like!

_No. . . !_

Eiji yelled out silently, his plea screaming out inside his mind. He was frozen; unable to lift a finger, even when something so cruel was playing out before him. Yuuna, surrounded by monsters, singing her beautiful song to save him. Eiji felt tears welling up in his smoky eyes, trembling with fear. He urged his hand to reach for the hilt of his sword, but he couldn’t. His shaking hand stayed frozen, his teary gaze stuck on Yuuna. Her singing was beautiful; she had always been an amazing singer, and to make it better, her singing gave other players a defense boost. Eiji felt himself hold his breath when Yuuna looked at him, her chestnut eyes sparkling.

_Yuuna. . . !_

And then she was gone.

Just like that, Yuuna was shattering into a million shining fragments, glistening with light and color. Eiji’s eyes widened, blinking a few times at the sight. It took him a moment to register what had just happened, and by the time he regained his senses, the monsters had turned their focus on him. Trembling still, but this time with anger and fear and sadness, he took a step back. The monsters leaped toward him, their claws outstretched, aiming to kill. With one last look at the spot where Yuuna had been, he turned and ran, finally gaining the ability to move.

_Why. . . Why, why can I move now? After she died?_

Now he felt tears trickle down his cheeks, blurring his vision. The tunnel stretched out before him, twisting and turning, no hint as to where it lead. Eiji took the risk, figuring it would be better than facing the hoard of enemies that was now chasing him. He finally unsheathed his sword, preparing himself for any enemies. The tunnel was dimly lit, torches spaced evenly away from each other the only light sources. Eiji glanced behind him, noticing that the group of monsters from before had started falling behind. The SAO player only sped up, following what felt like an endless passageway of forked pathways and loops. When the torches started to become scarce and a more natural light started to show farther ahead, he felt relieved.

Outside of the dungeon, night had fallen, and a full moon shone brightly in the sky. Eiji came to a stop just outside of the hellhole, the sound of the enemies long faded in the dreary cavern. He stared up at the “natural” satellite, panting from his long run inside the gloomy cave. There were still tears in his eyes, and now that he was alone and safe from the dangers of the game, he sobbed. His sword slipped from his grip as he collapsed, landing on his knees. It would've been quiet if it weren't for Eiji’s grieving cries. The player's moment of mourning was cut off by a hand on his shoulder, a quiet sob catching in his throat as he looked up.

Standing before him was Asuna, more commonly known as “The Flash.” Her hazel eyes shown with concern, “Nautilus. . . ? What happened, are you okay?”

Eiji shook with a few more sobs, glancing down to avoid her gaze. He didn't even know how to say it; that he had watched as Yuuna shattered into thousands and thousands of pieces, without doing a single thing to help.

When Asuna saw that he was in no condition to talk, let alone answer questions, she took his hand. She pulled him up to his feet, then reached for his fallen sword. Eiji swiped it before she could, sheathing it quietly.

Asuna tilted her head at him, “. . . Let's go, okay?”

Eiji responded with a nod, not trusting himself to speak. The Knights of the Blood sub-leader took the lead, heading in the direction of what Eiji thought was the main city of this floor. Every few minutes, Asuna would glance at him, noting that his glassy eyes held hints of despair. She didn’t prompt him to speak, which Eiji was glad for, and so they walked in a comfortable silence. After a while, they reached the town, and Asuna stopped walking. Eiji halted, giving her a confused look.

“. . . I don't know what happened in that dungeon, but. . .” the brunette sighed, “if you ever need to talk about anything, I'll listen, okay?”

Eiji nodded gratefully in response, taking a moment to find his voice, “Thank you, Asuna. . .”

“I'll be parting ways here, will you be okay?” she asked him, once again concerned.

“I'll be fine,” Eiji answered, although he was almost sure he wouldn't be. Asuna didn't need to know that, though.

“Okay, if you say so.”

With one last look at the other Sword Art Online player, Asuna turned, walking off into the city. Eiji wandered into the lamp-lit place sometime after, intending to find an inn to stay at for the night. He almost started crying again, thoughts of Yuuna filling his weary mind, but he abstained from such. Crying was something he could do later when he was alone with no one to watch him. Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Eiji made his way to the closest inn, doing his best to forget.


End file.
